she was born in a castle*, on the banks of a lake whose deep waters are colored, in those days, of a blue that almost inebriates, in one of the most spectacular and wild regions of the beautiful Bavaria ... and for about 25 - 30 years of a tale it keeps intact the connotations: the young princess knows her Charming Prince and became married at the age of just 16 years, thus arriving to wear the crown and tiara not just of a queen, but of Empress, Empress of a vast empire, the largest and most powerful of the old continent that already then (in 1853) had 52 million subjects ..... but not always fairy tales have a happy ending and this one begins to undress its fabulosity much, too soon.

But let's go ahead with order, we don't have to accelerate too much the time and let's go back, with our mind, and our heart, to the Holy Night of the year 1837: the stirrings of the small Elisabeth Amalia Eugenia echoed in the large halls of the castle of Possenhofen, and was thus brought to life the third daughter of Princess Ludovica of Bavaria and the Duke Maximilian in Bavaria, who, in the name of pleasure that he drew ascribing family names to his children, will call her simply Lisi or Sisi.The Victorian period was just beginning, for on June the 20th of that same year,at the age of just 18, in the UK the Little Duchess of Kent Alexandrina Victoria, had risen to the throne and was crowned queen with the name of Victoria, starting a kingdom that remains still today the longest that UK has ever known (she will reign until 1901 for a total of almost 64 years) and starting a kind of innovation in culture and customs that we all know with the name of Victorian age."

- picture 2- picture 3- picture 4

After introducing the discourse framing the Victorian period

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and trying to present the Queen Victoria, who of this was the involuntary author, as few outside British monarchy knew her,

- picture 6 - Queen Victoria in a photograph depicting her while admires a photo of her beloved

I mean as she appeared in public or, better in her privte life, devoid of that air of authority that often the portrait painters of the time tried to attribute her, with these words, last Sunday afternoon, at the conference of which, for the first time I was rapporteur, I went into the heart of the theme that of this meeting was the inspiring topic, Empress Elisabeth of Austria

- picture 7

and her way of being, without any voluntariness and intentionality, obeying only to the freedom of her spirit, in contrast with her time, with its culture, with the role that history had intended her to 'interpret', with the members of the court and the aristocracy in general of the Vienna of the XIXth century.

- picture 8 - Empress Elisabeth of Austria in a photograph of 1855

The aura of charm and fascination of which she was surrounded by, the innate regality of her manner, her look, his gait, aroused the admiration of everyone who met her while ignoring who she really was, and this Woman, who of the Victorian era was the real actress, not only, the true Protagonist for this way of living her life, above every convention, every conformism, in a time strictly labeled by impositions, deserving the nickname coined by Gabriele d'Annunzio of HEROINE OF DREAMS 1, conquered me from the age of my adolescence ... this regal black swan

- picture 9 - Empress Elizabeth in a photograph of 1865 depicted with one of her beloved dogs, Houseguard

- of the swan she had the moves and the features - elegant and refined, always eager to plow new waters, often dark and perilous, trying to find the way and the place where ease her 'pain of living', not to heal of it but to come to be able and support its weight, often too much, too much heavy.

The rushing horse and the sailing that swells gave her the illusion of the wings. The dew of the meadows knew her, and so the salty sands, and the marine multitudes, and the winds and the rains, and the eagles, and the invisible ways and the fascinating dangers. 2

.... The many deaths that as lightnings not made of light, but rather of darkness, darken her sky (first that of the little Sofia, then that of her only son, heir to the throne, in the tragedy of Mayerling, that of her beloved cousin Ludwig, who lost his life in the waters of the Stanberger See, the loss of her brother-in-law Maximilian, Emperor of Mexico and executed by his people and that of Charlotte, his wife, who lost her life consequently a form of madness generated by this deep grief, and finally that of her sister Sophie Charlotte became a nun and burned alive near Paris during a fire broke out during a charity fair, occured while she was trying to save as many people as she could, which was the last, the year before her death took her to move away by God to embrace a kind of pantheism, to feel the Sense of the Sacred in the Nature especially in its most immeasurable and boundless expressions ... the rough of the sea, the wind, the sky, the flight of birds, the immensity of the light ...To finally arrive to talk about her tragic and sudden demise, which occurred on September 10th, 1898, shortly after 14.30, which seems almost the fulfillment of her will, with no pain, no suffering, when she wasn't too old, yet ...

She died in the hour panic, the hour flamboyant, this creature without sleep, every morning, from a bow or a cape, greeted the dawn with the Iphigenia's words - Nothing is sweeter than to contemplate the light! - She is hit in the act in which she was going ahead towards the shore once more, once more toward the marvelous and comforter water that always attracted her by the promise of opening her deeper visions and to lead her in more hidden cuntries. 3

To prepare a meeting set in the era in which so much I feel I belong to and to talk about thoese characters I love so much, especially to make myself spokesman of the mysterious charm of the beloved Empress that over any other historical figure I do admire- The rhythm which regulated the magnificent soul mingles with the melody of the world that she listened for so long lying in the grass or in the sand, under the sun and under the stars, feeling the immensity of her grief matchig the flowing rivers and oceans swaying - 4was for the best gift that this Christmas could make me .... and I prepared myself spiritually, as first, appealing to what of Victorian always dwells within me, carefully choosing the clothes and the details with which to adorned them

- picture 10 - picture 11- picture 12- picture 13

as if I really had received the honor of traveling back in time, in the time in which my heart and my soul reside

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... And this trip, ideally, is what I do every time I sit here and dialogue with you, my dear friends, but Sunday it was different .... I had to recreate an era, an atmosphere, to make me a messenger, bringing with me a stamp of history, telling it, as I loved and still love to study it, and as I love to teach it, I mean not so much through dates, names, places, but through the lives of those people who have lived it and of it they were actors, giving it, and just so, foundation and authenticity, and which personages better than Queen Victoria and Empress Elisabeth represent the synthesis, the summary of this age , beautifully expressed, as not often happens, from a dichotomy!

And then the objects, those used everyday at that time, they finally gave verisimilitude to an era that, after all, isn't so much far from us.

- picture 15- picture 16- picture 17

To wear clothing preservimg the spirit of the past gives me an inner peace that even the smartest or the most beautiful dress of today cannot give, I am fully myself, maybe it seems unbelivable, but it's real, I assure you; this time I wanted everything acquired concreteness for those people who saw me and had come to listen to me, I wished profoundly to stop the time for that couple of hours that would have restricted the conference to be able to recover almost as Proust 'the flavor of the past', to the point of wishing that even my hair was adequate and perfectly attuned to this occasion ...

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Needless to say that I have many, so many people whom have to be grateful for this gift, beginning with Massimo Sannelli, which had to be present at my side, but at the last moment had to give up this commitment, characterized by a sweetness , a kindness and disposability of other times, who introduced me to Dr.Marco Giacinto Pellifroni, a wonderful person who has carefully organized the event, to Prof.Giorgio Girard, former professor of Psychology at the University of Turin, director of the Cultural Association Domenica Est at whose seat, in Finale Ligure, the meeting was held, and the friends who have helped me to make my appearance as much Victorian as possible, Patrizia, author of the beautiful headdress made with the whole enthusiasm with which she manages to reproduce artistic creations of coiffeures of the Victorian era, and Susanna, adorable creature, as an Angel always by my side, who achieves with extreme love true works of art (hers are the two cameos with the Empress face) ... and finally my husband

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which, lovingly, follows me everywhere supporting every initiative of mine, supporting me always lovingly and collaborating with me ... and then ... and then my parents, of course, we rarely think about it, but from them everything has been started and comes from their love, first of all.A gift, big, huge, was offered to me last Sunday, a gift that will remain forever in my heart ... thank you all, with great affection and a lot of gratitude.See you soon ♥

Citazioni and notes:* for the record I wat to point out that the future Empress was born in 'Herzog-Max-Palais built between 1828 and 1831 in the Ludwigstraße in Munich where the family spent the harsh winter months.-1, 2, 3, 4: from the article La virtù del ferro, in «Il Mattino», 29-30 settembre 1898, collected in Gabriele D’Annunzio, Scritti giornalistici, Meridiani, Mondadori, vol.II, now also on the web in the section ANTOLOGIA of the site UNA RAPIDA EBBREZZA edited by Massimo Sannelli and Vincenzo Laura( http://unarapidaebbrezza.blogspot.it/2011/12/dannunzio.html )

I am so impressed by your photos here, and your presentation both on your blog and what you presented on! First of all, thank you so much for leaving such a kind comment; I don't think we have "met" yet, though it seems you have been to my blog before? THANK YOU!

Your world is sublime and romantic and I can tell that you enjoy poetry as well? Oh, am I ever a lover of poetry and I try to write it as well as teach French.

May your Christmas be happy and perfect, all in a romantic setting! HUGS, Anita

@ AnitaI'm so very proud to have you here, that's truly a honour to me !Well I'm following you for a few months, to knw your blog means immediately to be involved into the magic that surrounds it !!! Thank you for your wonderful words, actually I do love poetry, of course, how could I live without it, I see it everywhere, in everything romantic, in quotes, in paintings, in Nature ... poetry is present or hidden in our whole life !ღ Have a Magic Christmas, my dear friend, thank you from the deep of my heart ღ

@ Sylviayou said it, that was a great day to me, I was so excited and so very happy for the topics I had to talk about, that was as a jump back into the past and you know how much I do love them !!!I wish you and your family too a Very Happy Christmas, my dearest friend, sending much love I heartily thank you╰☆╮

@ LisaI've been missing you so much, I hope everything's fine with you, my dear friend, your absence worries and grieves me, I'm going and try to catch you by mail to send my best wishes for the Christmas Time.Thank you with all my heart, sending blessings ❥

Seeing you in all your grandeur is such a lovely gift. :) I will be back to read your post while at my parents', today I almost fainted when I read "prof. Giorgio Girard", LOL! That man is both a genius and a nightmare, hahahaha! He was one of my prof. at Uni., and I had to phone to another classmate and tell her about him and your "project". As you can imagine, my evening have been spent over the phone reminiscing our years together at Uni and the 5 hours long written exam for Girard. Anyhoo, I'll be back, beautiful Daniela.Buon Natale da parte mia e di Zeno, a te a a tutti i tuoi cari! :)

@ Kiawhat your eyes see in me is the brightness of the joy, the joy I was living in that unforgettable moment ... Well, you see, we had to know each other, it was 'written', in a way or in another, when I was at Uni in Genoa I had in program an exam with Professor Girard, I truly wished it, but because of the distance I preferred to attend the course of Psychology there.Actually 5 hours aren't so few for an exam, I'm sure you'll never forget it :)Come back whenever you want my dear, you're always so welcome, you know !Contraccambio di cuore gli Auguri che estenderai a Zeno e alle vostre famiglie, mia cara, ti abbraccio forte forte ⊰✿⊱

About me

I've devoted my training in passions which have characterized my temperament since my early childhood, such as an incommensurate love for nature, whether it's outdoor living, plants or animals, that today I express taking lovingly care of a large garden, mine, which calls forth a romantic atmosphere, with its plants and with the style of the statues populating it, and living with two lovable cats, with the cutest and adorable baby-bunny and with two very funny and affectionate geese, the fascination for the story as a justification for everything that we encounter in our lives today, for the objects clad by the patina of time, the propensity towards all that pleases and enriches the soul that led me to cultivate theoretical and aesthetic studies, and the love for home that I've always lived like a nest, which protects and must be protected, a nest that welcomes and that must be able to communicate the love of those who live in it to anyone is going to enter it ... Oh, and last but not least is the joy it gives me to transfer in images feelings and moods, capturing moments .. to rediscover ... in a photograph ...

They have no Robes, nor Names -No Almanacs - nor Climes But general HomesLike Gnomes -

Their Coming, may be knownBy Couriers within -Their going - is not -For they're never gone -

Emily Dickinson, F303 (1862)

Let us be grateful to the

people who makes us

happy;

they are the charming

gardeners who make our

souls blossom.

Marcel Proust

Every day is a little life,

every awakening a small birth,

every new morning is a small youth.

Arthur Schopenhauer

There is a road

from the eye to the heart

that does not go

through the intellect.

G.K.Chesterton

As the years pass,

I'm coming more and more to understand

that it is the common, everyday blessings

of our common everyday lives

for which we should be particularly grateful.

They are the things that fill our days with comfort

and our hearts with gladness.

Laura Ingalls Wilder

Home is among the holiest of words.

A true home is one of the most sacred of places.

It is a sanctuary into which men flee from the world's perils and alarms.

It is a resting-place to which at close of day the weary retire to gather new strength for the battle and toils of tomorrow.

It is the place where love learns its lessons, where life is schooled into discipline and strength, where character is molded.

J.R. Miller, Secrets of Happy Home Life

A good character makes a special person,

charisma makes her bright.

But it is humility that makes her truly unique.

Mother Theresa

She burned too bright

for this world.

Charlotte Brontee, Wuthering Heights

I feel more and more everyday, as

my imagination strengthens, that I

do not live in this world alone but in

a thousands worlds.

John Keats

Philosophy and Art both render the invisible visible by imagination.

George Henry Lewes

A poet is a nightingale,

who sits in darkness and sing

to cheer its own solitude

with sweet sounds;

his auditors are as men entranced

by the melody of an unseen musician,

who feel that they are moved and softened,

yet know not whence or why.

Percy Bysse Shelley

I am not a woman, but the light

that falls on this gate, on this ground.

I'm the seasons, I think sometimes,

January, May, November;

the mud, the mist, the dawn.

Virginia Woolf, The Waves

All the words that I utter, And all the words that I write, Must spread out their wings untiring,And never rest in their flight, Till they come where your sad, sad heart is, And sing to you in the night, Beyond where the waters are moving, Storm-darken'd or starry bright.

A kind soul has featured me and my world

A delicate and lovely gift to Tenuta Geremia and me

My very first guests

~ THE FIRST LECTURE WHICH, SO MOVED, I HELD

It was such a great emotion, honour and privilege to me I won't ever forget, representing the fulfilment of a Dream in the name of my Love and Esteem for the Charismatic Figure of Elisabeth, Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary, and the fascinating period which She lived in, the Victorian Age.

~ SAT. AUGUST 6th, 2016 ~

DURING HER STAYS IN OUR SANREMO. Working amongst archive documents, I wrote with so much love this essay (obviously in Italian), filled with photographs and paintings dating back to the end of the XIXth century. Click on the image of its cover if you wish to purchase "L'Agave senza Spine".